Looking back, Aug. 3

THIS BASEMENT fallout shelter to protect the family from radioactive fallout was advertised in a 1960 The Dalles Optimist. The ad noted that basement shelters are generally the least expensive and a do-it-yourself version would cost between $150 and $200. Box Home Shelter or Battle Creek, Mich., offered the plans.

August 4

20 Years Ago-1993

The city of The Dalles must come up with at least $96,680 in cash by March 1994 if it wants to begin work on the Mill Creek Greenway. As a result, the project may be placed on hold because the city does not have the money. Planning Director Dan Durow told The Dalles City Council last night. Most of the project is to be funded with the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) “Ice –Tea” money, funneled through the Department of Transportation, Durow said. The Mill Creek Greenway would include a $388,000 walking trail along Mill Creek, giving citizens an opportunity to enjoy the creek. The greenway would connect to the Riverfront Trail when that project is complete.

Bond interest rates hit a 30-year low Tuesday and Wasco County taxpayers got the benefit when buyers immediately took all of the community college bonds for an average cost of 5.32 percent interest. The sale of $7,852,156 in 20 year bonds at that rate would mean the total interest costs would be $5,396,045, costing taxpayers 67 cents per $1,000 assessed value based on present property values for the county. More than $300,000 of the bonds was sold to local buyers, college president Bill Bell said at a press conference Tuesday afternoon. Terry Alfson of Edward D. Jones, Inc. in The Dalles said this morning he sold $105,000, and could have sold more.

40 Years Ago-1973

Two local photographers, the directors of the Far West Seminar for Photographers in The Dalles, will be featured on the Eight Lively Arts show on KGW-TV this Sunday at noon, Mel Olmstead and Wilma Roberts will be the guests on the program devoted this week to “Western Pictorial Photography.” They are listed in the current issue of TV Guide. The director of the program, Bob Jackson, and his camera crew, spend one day with the local duo during their last seminar in July doing some on scene photography which includes pictures of the Old West Gallery. Pottery by Doug Leash, The Dalles, and watercolors by Lois Talbot and Phil Tyler, Hood River, are featured.

Two undercover agents with aid of Wasco County and City of The Dalles officers seized drugs with street value estimated at approximately $10,000 and took seven persons into custody Friday. The haul, largest of its kind ever made in this area, took place about 10 miles southwest of Mosier in the area of the “16 hole,” swimming spot well know to young people. The drugs included some 27 pounds of marijuana, a small but valuable packet of hashish, a concentrated derivative of the same plant, and a package of peyote, dried button-like portions of a cactus plant...

60 Years Ago-1953

The path was being cleared today for construction of the 25 units of federally-sponsored rental housing for workers on The Dalles Dam. A $205,650 mortgage was given by the builder, Modern Home builders, Inc., to Commonwealth, Inc., of Portland, in an agreement filed yesterday afternoon at the county clerk’s office. The Seattle organization has contracted with the federal government to build 11 three-bedroom houses and seven two-bedroom duplexes as privately-operated rental housing for workers on the dam. Funds from the mortgage would finance construction of the housing under terms of the federal financing law for critical defense housing areas.

Only one month of vacation remains, students were reminded today with the announcement of school opening dates in Wasco County. Classes in District 12 schools start at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 2, and end at 12 noon, said Supt. Dave Bates. School districts outside The Dalles generally plan to start classes on Tuesday, Sept. 8, reported Wasco County School Supt. Frank Braumbaugh.

Work was under way on the first phase of a paint-up and modernization program for the city hall, Civic Auditorium and library buildings. Now under construction in the council chambers is a semi-circular council table designed to enable the audience to better follow council deliberations. Bids to be opened this month are for painting of the Civic Auditorium ballroom and hallway, sanding and sealing of the ballroom floor. To be opened in September are bids for painting the exterior trim of city hall followed by a bid opening in October for reroofing the library building. Funds for these improvements are provided in this year’s city budget.

80 Years Ago-1933

More than 100 women probably will be employed next week by The Dalles Cooperative Growers Association at the start of operations in processing the 1933 cherry crop for eastern markets. The decision to start next week was reached today by H.G. Miller, manager of the local association, following receipt of advices from State Labor Commissioner C.H. Gram that the wage agreement reached by cannery operators of Oregon, Washington and California will continue in operation under the NRA code. The agreement provides a minimum of 27 ½ cents an hour for full time workers and its equivalent for at 35 percent of all piece workers. This wage scale was decided upon recently by welfare workers of the three northwest states after cannery owners had filed protests against the proposal.

Business ranging from a police-men’s dance to a project of rebuilding the entire sewer system of Dalles City was discussed last night at the August meeting of the city council. The item taking up most of the time, however, was the purchase of a prowl car for city policemen, who are said to be confronted with the problem of chasing speeding cars and desperadoes of foot. The first proposal was to buy a used car, but this was later rejected in favor of purchasing a new machine. Local dealers’ bids were read and the problem of selecting a car for the moment seemed comparatively simple until the question of the National Recovery Act code governing automobile dealers came up. Then the fat was in the fire, one dealer contending that the code was not effective as the bids had been placed before it went into effect, while another dealer argued that any dealer bidding below the full list price was unpatriotic.

100 Years Ago-1913

The cherry trees of the orchards around The Dalles are probably, according to the authority of the Oregon Agricultural college exper, Mr. Barss, assistant professor of plant pathology, the most healthy in the Pacific Northwest. Professor Barss spent considerable time at The Dalles and vicinity this summer examining orchards, and he finds that in the local cherry orchards there is no disease existing Gummosis, which is one of the cherry pests most dreaded by the expert orchardist, is not found here at all.

The Columbia River salmon pack up to yesterday, figured out about 20 percent short of last year at this time. Reports from down the river were of a very unsatisfactory run. The seining grounds and the gillnetters were getting practically nothing, but at the bar fair catches were reported. There will be 18 days more of fishing and it is possible that an average pack will yet be made up. The immense numbers of young fish put in the river three years ago will insure a big run next year and it is possible that some of them will appear this summer before the season ends. Canners are counting on this fact to help them out in the next two weeks.

CeCe Fix of The Dalles Chronicle compiles Looking Back from the Chronicle’s archives.